Vacation update #4

It might be #3 or #5 – I lost count. We got up…had breakfast…got recognized…in my old t-shirt and blue jeans. We headed north through Newberry and on to Tahquamenon Falls. Not much civilization after Newberry. We got to the Upper Falls and hiked around. We actually thought about taking the 4.8 mile walk to the Lower Falls, but decided we’d drive and walk there. We bought a few things in the gift shop (mostly for my wife and mostly for Christmas). We hiked up and down, then rented a rowboat ($14 for the 2 of us for the entire day). We rowed around and went over to the island, where we walked around four times. It said that it was 3/4 mile, but it didn’t seem that long to us. We also walked along a stream for about a half mile out and half mile back. We again stopped in the gift shop. We ate what we brought…dried apricots, banana, apple, water. I got recognized about half a dozen times…it’s nice that people feel comfortable coming up and saying “hi”. Two families that said hello had moved out of West Michigan, but still remembered me. It was a perfect day…dry for a change (though the woods was quite damp), partly sunny and temperatures in the 6os with light winds. Then we got in the car and drove to Paradise and up to Whitefish Point. There were sure a lot of for sale signs – including the one gas station on route and the hardware in Paradise. It seemed like about 1 in 5 properties on Lake Superior were for sale. One sign pleaded that it was now half of the original asking price. I wondered if the hard winter had something to do with that. Unfortunately, the shop and Shipwreck Museum were closed when we got there. We saw one ship go past. The sky was so beautiful…wispy cirrus clouds, a few patches of cirrocumulus and altostratus. To the east across the bay, you could see he billowing tops of showers that were forming over the higher elevations of Canada with the convergence of the lake breeze and land breeze. They were also closer to the upper low that had brought the U.P. rain the last couple days. Waves were only about 6″. The vastness of Lake Superior is noteworthy. I could easily see 25+ miles across the lake to the higher hills of Canada that stretch north to Wawa and Chapleau. To the northwest you could see the breaks in the clouds down to the horizon. There’s 200 miles of water across the lake to the north and northwest and I imagined the frightful gales and heavy snow that mariners faced so many years ago. Outside of the one large freighter, there were no boats visible on the lake. I looked from horizon wet to horizon east. It was a summer day in August, usually the month with the warmest water and not a boat could be seen over the relatively calm waters. We drove back to Newberry and had dinner at the same restaurant we were at the night before. They had about 50 Trivia Pursuit cards (various editions) at each table and most of the patrons seemed to be having fun asking the questions. My first question was…the name of what canal spelled backwards is a Greek god. I got that one pretty quick…I have a geography degree and there aren’t many famous canals to pick from. I haven’t had time to transfer pics. from the phone…so the pic. here is Tahquamenon in winter, from the National Weather Service.

62 Responses to “Vacation update #4”

Pretty country to be sure! Last I was UP there was several years ago snowmobiling w/ friends around Tahquamenon (w/ approx. 4 ft. snow on the level)…w/stops @ Paradise,Raco, Strongs’ + a few other 4 corner ‘towns’.One had a stuffed black bear next to a wall– and my friend just had to ask the restaurant owner if she “ran over it w/ her car”..to which she replied, “WHAT, women can’t hunt?” She looked pretty tuff, and it was just the 3 of us, so I kicked him under the table, paid the bill & got the ___ out of Dodge before we were next to be stuffed. We did eat breakfast in Newberry on our way home…place called “Timber Charlie’s” w/ lots of wild animals decorating the walls- ENJOY!

Sounds like a fantastic vacation so far Bill! We went up there 3 years ago with my wife’s whole immediate family, and hit Iron River (Where my Mother in law is from), and stopped at Marquette, Munising (Sunken Ship tour was great but missed out on Pictured Rocks due to heavy fog), Tahquamenon Falls and the Soo, before heading to Mackinac and finally Traverse City on the way home. Was a BUSY week, but loads of memories for all of us and the kids!
As for the weather, it looks like the coming week will be Travis weather (Where Rocky will only talk about the 10 day and out forecast), before a forecast-ed return to Rocky weather next weekend (Where Travis will only talk about what the previous week was like).

Back in 2012 me and my wife did almost the same trip that Bill and his wife are doing now only we started at the Soo and headed west from there. And it was MUCH warmer with the first day at the Soo in the upper 80’s and then the upper 80’s to low 90’s at White Fish Point and Tahquamenon. It was sunny on land but over the lake there was a lot of fog that day. Then drove to Munising and the 2 days we were there it was in the low 90’s it was hot walking around both town and out at the Pictured Rocks. It was even hot on the boat ride out to the Pictured Rock. Hey it was hot the whole time we were in the UP back in 2012 At Cooper Harbor it was in the upper 70’s and very humid. The day we drove back home it was even in the mid to upper 80’s driving on US 2 along Lake Michigan and yes there were lots of people on the beaches and in the water in the spots where US 2 is right along the water.
Any way glad you are having a good time Bill.
SlimJim

A bunch of us from our kayaking group went to the UP in late July, 2012; camped at a friend’s cabin near Paradise. We paddled the beautiful Two-Hearted river about 3 weeks after the Duck Lake Fire burned that area – it was a unique experience, to say the least. The Two-Hearted empties into Lake Superior – and we SWAM in Superior for at least an hour, the water was so warm!! I LOVE the UP

Sounds like so much fun Bill! The places you listed off in Tahqueomenon and Newberry I nearly visted all of them when I went in 2012.

Bill, that gas station you said was forsale WAS open in 2012, as we got gas and some snacks there. Do you plan to visit the area of the Duck Lake Fire? I visited that while we were up there in early July, but it is very barren up there across Luce County, so I dont think many houses were impacted. Plus there is over 5 Miles we drove on thos one dirt road before we got to another cross street which was another dirt road!

I’d like to see how the roads are up there in the winter in Luce County, I am sure they are awful! Country Road 414 up there by the Duck Lake fire is miles and miles long with no civilization and no cross street for at least 5 miles as I said. Just burnt woods basically but I am sure there is green there now and maybe some smaller pines. It may be a seasonal road too for all I know

My kayaking friends went back up this year – the pictures they took showed a lot of dead trees; or trees that were growing leaves in clumps from close to the trunk (the branches are dead). The undergrowth has returned (and presumably the animals who live there) but the forest is forever damaged….

The eeriest part of paddling through that area in 2012 was the silence. Normally we hear birds/crickets/toads/frogs, etc – maybe even a deer crashing through the woods? But it was totally silent.

Yep I visited the fire spot on July 3,2012 and like you said the silence is very eerie. Not a bird, cricket or anything making a sound. Just dead burnt trees. Ferns were beginning to grow around that time, but that’s all there was. I am sure some animals like the open landscape. Because I tell you, we hiked in the UP and the woods is unbelievably thick. I love the UP, just not in the winter. I love the rocky shoreline, lots of cool rock and stones along the shore

Per NWS out of Great Falls, Mt…..Another pressing question continues to be the
chance for accumulating snow in the mountains of Glacier Park.
Latest models and guidance numbers suggest that snow levels could
drop as low as 7000 feet Saturday morning. This will likely give
higher peaks in the park a good dusting but temperatures are not
expected to remain at or below freezing for any significant length
of time. As a result, I am expecting any snow that falls to melt
fairly quickly with no significant impacts expected.

I tell you what, there is quite a variation of temperatures forecasted for this warm stretch. Maybe we should update daily the sources around town. The NWS has dropped their temps for the weekend a bit I’m assuming because of this fog. Numbers include today… will the sun even come out today?
GR NWS: 84,83,86,89,87
WOOD: 85,87,88,90,87
WZZM: 87,88,91,85,78
WXMI: 85,85,87,90,88

I lived in the UP for 22 years, and only managed to visit Tahquamenon Falls this year, more than a decade after I moved away. My family and I made a detour there on our way up to the Keweenaw Peninsula. Was a very warm day, daughter and I waded in the water, son and husband watched from shore. Saw people packing in picnics and beach towels and coolers – they were definitely planning on making a day of it!

I think at altitude, snow can happen any time? Eons ago, we were trying to cross the Continental Divide at Fall River Pass in Rocky Mountain National Park; but they closed the main road because of blizzard conditions at the top. We waited 3 days in Estes Park (still blizzarding on the mountain – blue skies everywhere else) – then gave up and drove back towards Denver and around to the south. The date? August 12th, 1978, I think….

I can’t wait to see how warm costal Lake Michigan temps will get. With South Haven’s water temps in the 70s already, it could get quite nice. I’ll head to the beach early next week when the water’s will likely be at its warmest. Here’s hoping for some upper 70′s to 80. And then some wind and waves to go with it.

Here’s the bet you loser! If GR hits 90 degrees I will not comment on this blog for one week and if GR does not hit 90 degrees then fixxxer, matt and the rest of your loser aliases will not make any comments for one complete week! Are you in or are you all talk and afraid to make the bet? You are a whining, complaining, racist, lying, loser! Thanks for listening!